


The Rest Is History

by pidgeandcat



Series: Zutara Week 2020 [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff, Wedding Fluff, Zutara, Zutara Week, Zutara Week 2020, hakoda and zuko are friends, katara is a Strong Woman TM, literally don’t know how to tag, zuko drinks respect woman juice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:42:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25574524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pidgeandcat/pseuds/pidgeandcat
Summary: Written for Zutara Week 2020! day 3- fuse.The cultures of water and fire fit together better than anyone expected.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Zutara Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1853494
Comments: 2
Kudos: 42





	The Rest Is History

The palace was abuzz. Servants rushed about, preparing flower arrangements and setting tables. The perfect weather and the promise of the day kept everyone in a pleasant mood. A slight breeze whistled through the embellished royal gardens, eventually succumbing up into the robin’s egg sky. Cumulus clouds floated lazily overhead, drifting along as swiftly as a toy boat in a lazy river. The lush flower bushes were pin pricked with white roses and baby blue hydrangeas. They silhouetted the crystalline pond in the center of the garden, in which the turtle ducks swam leisurely. They ruffled their feathers and lifted their bills in a dignified fashion, and it was almost as if they understood the importance the day held. The great white arch positioned just in front of the fountain shone brighter than anything else as it reflected the sunlight. Countless chairs were arranged before the altar in order to accommodate the friends and family from every nation who had come to watch the Fire Lord Zuko finally take a wife.

Zuko was finally getting married. He’d been anticipating it for so long, and yet the day had finally arrived. While servants bustled about his quarters adorning him with proper Fire Lord regalia, he let his thoughts wander to the woman a few doors down, no doubt getting fussed over by servants of her own. He smiled at the thought; Katara hated getting fussed over. He imagined her insisting she comb her own hair and snatching away the brush. He shook his head, chuckling. She was so headstrong and independent, and that was only one of the reasons why he loved her. 

Zuko glanced at himself in the mirror, and his reflection startled him. He looked like a different man. His inky black hair had been pulled into a tight top knot, the golden Fire Lord headpiece pinned snugly into the bun. Although it was tradition that the Fire Lord wear a top knot at all times, his preferred style was loose and shaggy. He had made an exception for his wedding day; albeit mostly because Iroh forced him to. The very nature of the wedding itself proved that he didn’t care much for tradition, and his hair was the least of his worries. 

His face still hadn’t changed; the scorch marks around his right eye were still etched into his skin, a constant reminder of his father’s cruelty and abuse. He used to feel despair upon seeing his scar in a mirror, but over time he had learned to treat it as a mark of his honor. Whenever he looked at it, he was reminded only of how far he’d come since that day and the great deeds he’d accomplished as Fire Lord. Still, he couldn’t help think of what a shame it was that he had a marred face on his wedding day. He knew Katara would scold him for thinking that way, so he averted his thoughts away from the subject and instead focused on the soon-to-be Fire Lady. 

Katara. Who would’ve thought that the Fire Lord would be marrying the last water bender of the Southern Water Tribe? The arrangement certainly wasn’t popular with the majority of the Fire Nation, but Zuko didn’t care what they thought. They didn’t know her like he did. 

The two of them hadn’t met under ideal circumstances, with Zuko hunting the Avatar and all, but over time they gained each other’s trust and grew closer than they ever could have foreseen. They told each other everything, and knew that the other would always be there offering support. Zuko especially did his best to support Katara, since she constantly supported everyone else. After the war Katara had a brief fling with Aang, and although Zuko’s feelings towards her were muddled, he was there for her through the ups and downs. He listened when she flopped on his bed and gushed about their first date in Ba Sing Se, describing the quaint shops he took her to and the romantic gestures that made her weak in the knees. He sat with her and helped her through her confusion while she vented about her conflicted feelings, and how what used to feel like undeniable love might have just been a crush. He supported her when she confided to him that she was falling out of love but didn’t know what to do, since she didn’t want to break Aang’s heart, and he stayed by her side when she finally broke up with him and needed a shoulder to cry on. They spent months and even years bonding and creating memories, but it wasn’t until they were spending a summer afternoon in the royal gardens that they finally realized what sparked between them. 

Love. Their unbreakable friendship had blossomed into the deepest form of love. 

Zuko realized that love was what caused him to intercept Azula’s lightning bolt all those years ago, and the starfish shaped scar on his chest was a reminder of what he would do to save her. He remembered the heart stopping terror when he had realized what was about to happen, and it had been the most agonizing millisecond of his life. A world without Katara was a world he would rather not live in. 

Katara realized that love was what drove her to save him, the raw emotion fueling the power of her healing as she cradled his lifeless form, praying to Tui and La that she didn’t lose him. She remembered the relief drain out of her body as he rasped out his thanks, and it had been the most wonderful moment of her life. A world without Zuko was a world she would rather not live in.

When they finally understood, it was as if something had clicked into place. They were just so easy together, and it was relieving to finally be able to display their affection. Couples watching them interact were often struck with jealousy. It was apparent that while they were lovers, above all they were best friends. They knew each other so well that they could have an entire conversation without uttering a word, and could convey multiple emotions by sharing a single glance. 

Zuko had no doubt in his mind that Katara would make a fantastic Fire Lady. Her passion was evident in how adamantly she advocated for those who didn’t have a voice, and while she was cautious and kind she was also ferocious and unafraid. She spoke her mind and stood her ground in front of even the most egotistical ministers, and Zuko admired her unwavering confidence. It was for these reasons and more that he had chosen her as one of his most trusted advisors. After seeing nearly every nation around the globe, her knowledge of worldly affairs equaled Zuko's, and the way her intelligence mixed perfectly with her charm made it difficult to disagree with her. Despite being native to the Southern Water Tribe, she cared deeply about every citizen of the Fire Nation as well, no matter which social class they were in. She wore a hard exterior at the debate table, but Zuko could always tell what she was really thinking behind her azure eyes. He had memorized the meaning of every little inflection in her voice, and noticed when she tilted her head slightly to the right in confusion. He knew that later that night they would converse about the hypocrisy of the foreign trade minister or the misogynistic remarks of a representative. 

Zuko’s thoughts dissipated when the door to his quarters swung open. The guards and servants parted to reveal Chief Hakoda striding over the threshold. 

“Fire Lord Zuko!” 

Hakoda was soft spoken, but somehow his deep voice seemed to reverberate throughout the room. Zuko rose and the two men bowed to each other, but after a moment’s hesitation they decided to abandon custom and engaged in a short lived but meaningful embrace. When they straightened, Zuko grinned.

“Thank you for coming today, Chief Hakoda. What brings you to my quarters?” 

“Just wanted to let you know that everything is in place so far, and the arrangements are absolutely beautiful. Also, I wanted to wish you luck.” Hakoda got a nostalgic look in his eyes. “I remember my wedding to Kya. It was the best day of my life. Today’s memories will last you a lifetime, so make them good ones.” He clapped Zuko on the shoulder amiably. 

“Don’t worry, sir. I’ll take good care of your daughter,” Zuko stated, and he could see a glint of amusement in Hakoda’s face. 

“You’d better, because she could seriously mess you up.” They both laughed softly. Zuko could tell that they would get along just fine. “I hope the union of you two can give birth to a new era of cooperation between the Water Tribe and the Fire Nation. So much good could be done with the power of fire and water joined. You two are evidence of that!”

“That’s a brilliant idea, and Katara and I have been planning to bring it up with the ministers for some time,” Zuko admitted. “ We’re just waiting for the right moment. There will definitely be some pushback, but I think that this decision could better the world.”

Hakoda beamed and bowed once more. “Good luck out there, Fire Lord,” he said, already disappearing out the door. 

Zuko took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself. In just a few short minutes, he’d be getting married, and then Katara would be his wife. It all seemed so surreal. He couldn’t wait to see her walk down the aisle, and he could only imagine how beautiful she looked right now. 

He thought about his conversation with Hakoda. When brought together, the arguably two most powerful elements could be incredible but also formidable. His and Katara’s bending styles fit together like puzzle pieces; where one side was hollow, the other side filled the void. While Zuko couldn’t heal people with his bending, Katara had the ability to do that with hers. While Katara couldn’t produce heat and light with her bending, Zuko had the ability to do that with his. They accentuated each other’s strengths and compensated for their weaknesses. The union of the two elements was easier than it seemed, too; fire bending and water bending are the same in concept. Fire benders draw their fire from the oxygen in the air, and water benders draw their water from the humidity. They worked together as if they were made to, because they were. 

Zuko hoped that the citizens of the Fire Nation would take kindly to a Water Tribe alliance. The constant propaganda his father spewed out during the war took a huge toll on the country’s morals. Katara had faced some derogatory comments herself. The Water Tribe had never been anything but peaceful, so Zuko saw no reason for the hostility. And if anything could prove that the merging of the two cultures was possible, their wedding certainly did. 

It was mostly Fire Nation, given the circumstances, but they had tried to include elements of the Water Tribe culture everywhere they could. The ceremony had been organized by Hakoda, with some help from Iroh as well. Zuko had carved Katara a beautiful betrothal necklace in honor of their custom. Zuko wore the traditional black and red robes, the satin as smooth as glass. The women in the crowd wore their own traditional satin garments of red and white. The decorations were accented with the blue of the tribe, and behind the altar sapphire lanterns were ready to be released and suspended by flame. It represented Katara and Zuko, in a way; the flame keeps the lantern aloft, while its bright reflection smears in the pond below. 

The audience seated guests from every nation: King Kuei and his bear, the Kyoshi warriors, and, of course, Uncle Iroh. Az Zuko stood nervously at the altar, Iroh caught his eye and flashed him a wry smile. He couldn’t help but return it. When the music finally began to play and Katara stepped out into view, his breath hitched. 

She was beautiful. 

Her hair, swept into an elegant updo, was coiffed into loose ringlets that cascaded down her back. The blindingly white dress was cinched at her waist and billowed out into a sweeping lace skirt, her train trailing behind her like a stream of water. From behind her icy veil, her eyes were wide and jubilant, her blue irises locked on his. Her lips curled into a smile as she began to walk, her feet concealed behind swaths of fabric. 

The rest of the procession was a blur. Suddenly she was at his side, and he couldn’t focus on anyone else. When they recited their vows, there was not a dry eye to be seen. He could barely hear the words being uttered by the priest, until they were saying I do, and then…

“You may kiss the bride.”

Love is what brought them together today, and it was the best day of his life. A world where they’re not together is a world that Zuko would rather not live in. 

The lanterns were released into the sky, and the rest is history.

**Author's Note:**

> hi! cat here. thanks for reading if you did! this is my first zutara week and i’m new to the fandom. this is the first fic i’ve ever written so if you have any feedback please let me know :) Also, give us a follow on Tumblr @ pidgeandcat! Thanks!


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